Justin Lin to Helm STAR TREK 3

Mike Fleming over at Deadline is hearing that Paramount Pictures, Skydance Productions and Bad Robot have tapped Justin Lin (‘Fast and Furious,’ ‘True Detective’) to take the reins of ‘Star Trek 3.’

Lin replaces Roberto Orci, who was initially set to direct the third outing of the rebooted sci-fi franchise before vacating the director’s chair earlier this month. Orci will remain on board to serve as producer.

Plot details are of course unknown, but key cast members, including Chris Pine, Zoe Saldana, Zachary Quinto, and Simon Pegg are expected to return, with J.J Abrams producing along with his producing partner Bryan Burke and Skydance’s David Ellison.

Released in 2009, the first ‘Star Trek’ grossed $380 million worldwide, with last year’s sequel, ‘Star Trek Into Darkness,’ taking $467 million worldwide.